In the past, cooking ovens have been devised which employ tungsten-filament electric light bulbs for heating. Some of these, such as those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,368,063 and 4,249,067 comprise toys and are not suitable for practical kitchen use. Others, such as that shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,630,237, employ light bulbs above and below an object to be cooked, but are cumbersome and are not altogether practical.
The present invention is particularly adapted for use in heating pre-packaged foods contained in sealed, plastic pouches. Such foods normally include vegetables, soups and the like which are pre-packaged and sold frozen. The food may be fresh-frozen or precooked. In order to heat the food, ordinarily it is necessary to immerse it, while in its plastic pouch, in boiling water or it can be heated in a microwave oven. It is not possible or practical to heat such pouches in a conventional oven or on a grill since the plastic pouch will melt at temperatures above about 250.degree. C. As the food heats, steam is generated which expands the plastic pouch; and in the case of microwave heating, the pouch must be ruptured to permit the steam to escape to prevent rupture during the heating process. In the case where food within the pouch is precooked, water is usually brought to a boil (a period of at least 5 minutes) followed by immersion of the pouch in the boiling water for at least 18 minutes. Uncooked foods, of course, take longer.